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The second day of Paris Fashion Week is marked by the rebirth and ephemeral celebration of two luxury comets that disappeared too soon<\/strong>: designer Virgil Abloh<\/strong>, who died at the age of 41 from a devastating cancer, and the colette concept store<\/strong>, which closed in 2017, 20 years after its inauguration by Colette Roussaux and her daughter Sarah Andelman.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Both made their mark during their brief existences by opening the windows of fashion to a broader cultural field<\/strong>, with a particular appetite for music and art<\/strong> in the broadest sense…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Like stars that continue to shine after their death, the two will make a joint reappearance from September 30 to October 9, 2025<\/strong>, with an exhibition for Virgil Abloh and a pop-up for colette<\/strong>. The two will come together at the Grand Palais<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Produced in partnership with Nike and the Virgil Abloh Foundation<\/strong>, the exhibition \u201cVirgil Abloh: The Codes\u201d<\/strong> is intended to be \u201can expanded edition of \u2018Virgil Abloh: The Codes\u2019, already presented in 2022 (in Miami, editor’s note),\u201d explains the Grand Palais.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It offers a retrospective of the man who left his mark on the fashion world, not only by founding the atypical label Off-White<\/b> in 2013, in which LVMH<\/b> invested in 2021 (to the tune of 60%), but also by designing the Louis Vuitton men’s collections from 2018 until his death<\/b>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n This is an opportunity to gain a better understanding of this talented jack-of-all-trades through 20,000 archival pieces (objects, creations from his personal collections, and other images, sketches, and prototypes)<\/strong>, illustrating his two decades of creativity.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThis retrospective also highlights Abloh’s collaborations with several artists, designers, and athletes, emphasizing the ethos of community and creative dialogue<\/strong> at the heart of his work. Workshops, performances, and screenings will extend the experience, offering a deeper insight into the themes of the exhibition and bringing together the voices of Abloh’s creative community,\u201d explains the Grand Palais.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And the latter announced another happy \u201cresurrection\u201d<\/strong>… \u201cDuring the exhibition, Colette<\/strong> […] will set up shop in the Clemenceau rotunda to offer new items designed by Virgil Abloh’s closest collaborators, alongside iconic items, including a reissue of the Virgil Abloh x Braun collaboration and the French translation of Larry Warsh’s book Abloh-isms.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Those nostalgic for the late Colette or representatives of the younger generation in search of neo-vintage creations are sure to rush to snap up reissues of Colette’s bestsellers<\/strong>, such as the BC02 alarm clock<\/b>, the result of the Virgil Abloh x Braun collaboration, a small travel alarm clock inspired by two designers from the 1960s\/1970s, Dieter Rams and Dietrich Lubs, representatives of the German minimalist movement, or the French translation of the book \u201cAbloh-isms<\/strong>,\u201d a collection of aphorisms inspired by the designer and edited by Larry Warsh.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But they can also opt for various rare items (fashion, design, books, etc.) or exclusive pieces from brands, particularly streetwear<\/strong>, whose designers were part of the late Virgil’s creative circle (Babylon, BEEN TRILL, BSTROY, Cactus Plant Flea Market, Futura Laboratories, L’Art de L’Automobile, SP5DER, Stray Rats, Travis Scott<\/strong>, etc.).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Those who are unable to visit the pop-up store will also be able to access a selection of items online<\/b>. During its short life, Colette itself also offered both online and offline formats.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cVirgil had a deep admiration for Colette<\/b> and firmly believed in the use of commercial spaces as platforms for cultural expression,\u201d said Shannon Abloh, who heads the Virgil Abloh Foundation<\/b> and co-designed the space with Sarah Andelman, in a statement.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The idea of associating colette with this tribute to Virgil Abloh was a natural one. Before becoming the first Black artistic director at a luxury fashion house with the global reach of Louis Vuitton, Abloh’s good fairies included the concept store.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n colette was one of the first retailers to stock the T-shirts<\/b> designed by the creator of Off-White<\/b>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n From its inception at 213 Rue Saint-Honor\u00e9, with 740 square meters of retail space spread over three floors, colette has strived to stand out by introducing new brands and new talent.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n And the place became all the more of a springboard for the latter, as Colette Roussaux and Sarah Andelman,<\/b> a graduate of the Ecole du Louvre, had a knack for making it much more than just a fashion store: a place whose signature was <\/b>the portmanteau word \u201cStyleDesignArtFood\u201d<\/b> and where, in addition to cutting-edge ready-to-wear and accessory designs, beauty and perfume brands, design, music, photography, publishing, press, and high tech<\/strong>. Apple products, such as the Apple Watch<\/b>, are often sold there in preview.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n People come here to browse, discover all kinds of gems, sometimes thanks to the latest exhibition showcasing limited edition or exclusive series products, and to quench their thirst without fear for their fashion victim figure in the basement. The basement houses a completely original water bar<\/b> offering dozens of rare brands of still and sparkling water sourced from all over the world.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n To keep their community of followers curious, the two retailers have the smart idea of renewing their window display and the interior layout of the store on a weekly basis…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n For its part, the pop-up store set up for the Virgil Abloh: The Codes exhibition is not the first pop-up store inspired by colette.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Before it closed its doors for good, the concept store regularly co-created<\/b> pop-up stores around the world with luxury brands such as Chanel<\/b> in Paris and Comme des Gar\u00e7ons<\/b> in Tokyo, as well as more accessible brands such as Gap<\/b> in New York.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And after the iconic store closed, the 2020 world tour of the documentary colette mon amour<\/i><\/b>, filmed by Hugues and Eliane Lawson-Bodqui<\/b> and recounting the boutique’s two decades through its two founders, was also accompanied by pop-up installations in Paris, London, New York, and Tokyo<\/b>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The one opened in the French capital, near the Tuileries Garden, in partnership with Maison Kitsun\u00e9, in February, just before the pandemic, offered, among various very limited edition items, 20 copies of a bag designed by Virgil Abloh for Off-White…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n During its physical existence, colette attracted an average of 1,000 visitors per day and four times that number during Fashion Weeks. And its ephemeral and concentrated 2025 version, combined with the aura of Virgil Abloh, is sure to do even better…<\/p>\n <\/p>\nBrief existences<\/h2>\n
A talented jack-of-all-trades<\/h2>\n
Reissues and exclusive creations<\/h2>\n
Deep admiration<\/h2>\n
Much more than a fashion store<\/h2>\n
Previous colette pop-ups<\/h2>\n
1,000 to 4,000 visitors per day!<\/h2>\n